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Serket (2004) vol. 9(2): 41-67.

Intraspecific diversity of morphological characters of the burrowing scorpion Scorpio maurus palmatus (Ehrenberg, 1828) in Egypt (Arachnida: Scorpionida: Scorpionidae)

Ismail M. Abdel-Nabi 1*, Alistair McVean 2, Mohamed A. Abdel-Rahman 1 and Mohamed Alaa A. Omran 1 1 2

Zoology Department, Faculty of Science, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt School of biological Science, Royal Holloway London University, Egham, Surrey, TW20 OEX, UK

Abstract The general objective of the present study is to examine the intraspecific variations in the morphological characters of the scorpion, Scorpio maurus palmatus, populations inhabiting different geographic regions in Egypt. Whereas the specific objective is dealing with the impact of the environmental factors, biotic and abiotic, on the intraspecific variations of this scorpion species. Scorpions were collected from three locations in South Sinai, i.e. Wadi Sahab, Wadi ElAgramia, Wadi Rahaba, which represent the arid area and a region in the Western Mediterranean Coastal Desert (WMCD), which represents the semiarid area. Random soil samples were taken from all sites for physical and chemical analysis as well as the available plants and insects around the scorpions burrows were collected and identified. The depths of the scorpions’ burrows were measured and their different shapes were recorded. Several statistical analyses were carried out for the tested parameters to explain the complicated interaction between them. Most of the morphometric measurements (total body length, pedipalp length, pedipalp hand width, number of setae on legs and number of pectinal teeth) revealed highly significant differences within and among populations. Pearson correlation matrix of some morphometric measurements and environmental factors (altitude, soil nature, climate) showed an interaction between them. Discriminat Functions Analysis (DFA) and Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA) showed that WMCD population is highly distinct from the other populations in Sinai. These results indicated that: 1- Scorpio maurus palmatus exhibits a general morphological separation between populations, 2- intraspecific diversity in this species may be due to variation in the environmental conditions (biotic and abiotic factors), and 3- total body length, pedipalp length as well as number of setae can be used as good markers to examine intraspecific diversity of most scorpion species. Keywords: Intraspecific diversity, South Sinai, Western Mediterranean Coastal Desert, Egypt, Scorpions, Scorpionidae, Scorpio maurus palmatus. * To whom correspondence should be addressed. Email: [email protected]

Introduction Scorpions, members of class Arachnida, are very ancient chelicerate arthropods. Order Scorpionida (Scorpiones) includes 1259 described species in 16 living families and 155 genera (Fet et al., 2000). Scorpions live in tropical and temperate regions of the world, within 50 degrees North and South of the Equator. They live in forests, savannas, deserts, and some species are even found in mountains over 5000m of altitude. All scorpions are nocturnal, hiding during the day under stones, wood, or tree bark, in termite hills, and other protected places. Some species seem to be attracted by human habitation and live around the human dwellings and even inside of them (Anderson, 1983). Although, scorpions are one of the oldest and most common animals in the world, they had received little attention from the biological point of view. In Egypt, most of publications dealt with the toxicity of its venom (Omran et al, 1992a and b; Omran & Abdel-Rahman 1992 and 1994; Omran & McVean, 2000; Omran, 2003). A few publications dealt with its morphology, anatomy, embryology and histology (Khalil et al., 1983a, b and 1985; El-Bakary, 1990 and 1998); systematics and ecology (El-Hennawy, 1987, 1992 and 2002; Moustafa, 1988); and physiology (El-Bakary, 1986). Scorpions were known to people since ancient eras. The ancient Egyptians documented them in their writings. Modern scientific writings did not mention scorpions until 1825 in the book “Description de l'Égypte” and what was recorded by the French scientist Savigny and completed by his student Audouin and contained a description of three species of one family. A few publications followed during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries introducing us to more species of scorpions that live in Egypt. The list of Egyptian scorpions currently includes 24 species classified under 13 genera of four different families, Buthidae, Diplocentridae, Euscorpiidae and Scorpionidae, (ElHennawy, 2002). Genus Scorpio belongs to subfamily Scorpioninae, Family Scorpionidae. It is recorded from North Africa, Middle East to Iran and Arabia. It is now generally accepted that there is only one species in this genus: Scorpio maurus (Linnaeus, 1758) which includes 18 subspecies (Fet et al., 2000). Socrpio maurus palmatus (Ehrenberg 1828) is mainly recorded in Egypt from near Alexandria, Wadi Natrun, Cairo, El-Faiyum and Sinai (El-Hennawy, 1992, 2002). A good full description of S. m. palmatus is included in the work of Levy and Amitai (1980). It was chosen to study the intraspecific diversity of scorpions’ morphology in Egypt in this study. It is found on browned sandy soils, loess and alluvial soils and in stony desert. It burrows and can move stones heavier than itself. Each scorpion lives alone in a burrow, but concentrations of hundreds of burrows may be found in certain areas. The burrows have a crescent-shaped opening and run fairly parallel to the ground for about 10 cm after which it runs downwards for 20 to 70 cm. The bottom is slightly enlarged. The animal leaves the burrow at night or stands at the entrance with the pincers slightly raised. Parturition occurs in August-September with 813 young scorpions. S. m. palmatus preys small and large arthropods. It does not sting readily and the sting is not very painful to humans (Levy & Amitai, 1980). Males have been observed (Rosin & Shulov, 1961) to produce sounds by rapidly striking the posterior half of the mesosoma against the ground. This species prefers areas of high precipitation, dense vegetation and deep soil. Apparently, these factors also provide them with a suitable microclimate for maintaining optimal water and thermal balance (Warburg et al., 1980). The general objective of the present study is to examine the intraspecific variations in the morphological characters of the scorpion, Scorpio maurus palmatus, populations inhabiting different geographic regions in Egypt. Whereas the specific

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objective is dealing with the impact of the environmental factors, biotic and abiotic, on the intraspecific variations of this scorpion species.

The study area The present study was carried out in two different geographical regions in Egypt (Fig. 1). The first was located in the southern part of Sinai Peninsula, which represents the arid area and is geographically separated from the rest of the Egyptian land by the Suez Canal and the Gulf of Suez. Three locations in this region were chosen as separate wadis (valleys) near Saint Catherine (Wadi Sahab 28o42'33"N 33o47'16"E 910m Altitude, Wadi El-Agramia 28o45'39"N 33o54'39"E 1225m Alt., and Wadi Rahaba 28o25'154"N 33o59'54"E 1676m Alt.). The second region was located in the Western Mediterranean Coastal Desert (WMCD), west of Alexandria, which represents the semi arid area (30o55'91"N 29o35'27"E 30.5m Alt.). A. Sinai Peninsula 1. Locations and Geography Sinai Peninsula (Fig. 1) is a triangular plateau (61000 km2) occupying the northeastern corner of Egypt (Said, 1990). South Sinai area is about 28400 km2, 46% of the total area of Sinai Peninsula (South Sinai Governorate, 1997). The study area (Fig. 2) was located between latitudes 28o10' and 29o10' N, and longitudes 33o15' and 34o39' E. It covers three main areas representing different vegetation types, altitudinal variation, landform and climatic variations. These areas are: 1- Wadi El-Agramia in the centre of South Sinai, 2- Wadi Sahab in the west, and 3- Wadi Rahaba in the east (Fig. 2).

Fig. 1. The study area. South Sinai, Western Mediterranean Coastal Desert. Fig. 2. Location map of South Sinai showing the study areas (Wadi Sahab, Wadi ElAgramia and Wadi Rahaba) around St. Catherine. 2. Geology and Geomorphology The northern part of Sinai is almost entirely covered by sedimentary rocks, mostly limestone. In the southern part, the basement rocks occupy about 7000 km2 surface area,

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forming a triangular mass of mountains with its apex at Ras Mohammad to the south. The Sinai massif contains much granite and other magmatic and metamorphic rocks (Hammad, 1980). The Sinai massive is dissected by numerous incised wadis. The highest peak, Gebel (Mountain) Catherine attains an altitude of 2641m above sea level. Due to the Massif Mountains in the centre, South Sinai has a wide range of altitudinal variation (Said, 1990). The altitudinal gradient decreases from St. Catherine area going eastward till Gulf of Aqaba and westward till Gulf of Suez. The study area has two main landform types: Wadis and Plains. The term wadi designates a dried riverbed in a desert area. A wadi may be transformed into a temporary watercourse after heavy rain. Wadi bed is covered with alluvial deposits with different thickness and structure from location to another. The soil is usually composed of the same composition as the parent rocks and varied in texture from fine silt or clay to gravels and boulders (Kassas, 1952 and Kassem, 1981). In general, the depth of alluvial deposits and smoothness has a negative relation with the altitude. Plains are flat expanses of desert where deep alluvial deposits are found. The desert plains represent a very late stage in the arid erosion cycle (Kassas, 1952). 2.1. Wadi El-Agramia (Fig. 2) is one of the most important physiographic features of St. Catherine area. It is located about 30 km to the northeast of St. Catherine city and covers an area of about 25 km2. It is a gravel-stream wide plain with surface cobbles and about 10% of the basal area. The area has two main localities; Agramia plain, and Wadi Hargos. The altitude of the area ranges between 1000 to 1500m above sea level. Geographically, the exposed rocks in the area are granitoids with some basic to intermediate dykes. Separate granitic outcrops are sporadically distributed over the general slope of the study area and towards the entrance of Wadi Hargos (Shendi, 1992). 2.2. Wadi Rahaba (Fig. 2) lies in the south of St. Catherine as a part of Wadi Nasb Basin. It is filled with alluvial deposits of gravelled and coarse sandy soil surface. The plain is surrounded by granitic hills. Nasb Basin starts from south of St. Catherine and runs eastward to Dahab city on the Gulf of Aqaba. This basin includes Wadi El-Asbaiya, Wadi Rasis, Wadi Talat El-Ghofra, Wadi Rahaba, Wadi Nasb and Wadi Zahara. The nature of soil surface starts rocky (about: 80% coarse sand and gravel, 20% cobbles). At the end of the basin, the soil surface is covered mainly by fine and coarse sand (Abd ElWahab, 2003). 2.3. Wadi Sahab (Fig. 2) lies at about 40 km to the west of St. Catherine area, and 15 km of Feiran Oasis. It is a tributary of Wadi Feiran. Wadi Sahab is relatively flat and broad, on its bed there are no big boulders as those found in steep wadis. On the surface there are little stones. The soil may be considered to be sandy soil because sand constitutes the greatest part of soil at all depths (El-Naggar, 1991). 3. Climate According to UNEP (1992), arid and semiarid environments occupy about 37% of the land on earth. Sixty four percent of the global dry lands and 97% of hyper arid desert are concentrated in Africa and Asia. South Sinai is characterized by an arid to extremely arid climate (Danin, 1986). Available meteorological data (rainfall, temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, and evaporation) of number of stations in South Sinai mainly collected from the Meteorological Authority, Water Research Centre, El-Tur Meteorological Station, and Saint Catherine Research Centre are summarized in Table (1).

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Table 1. Available meteorological data of some stations in South Sinai, Egypt, compiled from different sources. Month

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

St. Catherine 1979-1992 * Rainfall (mm)

5..9

1.9

6

0.5

0.4

0.0

0.0

0.1

0.0

0.7

0.9

2.7

49.8

43.3

39.4

28.6

24.9

27.2

28.8

30.1

28.1

31.9

34.2

42.7

o

14.3

15.1

17.7

24.4

28.3

30.8

31.8

28.7

27.7

26.1

20

16.3

o

M. Min. Temp. ( C)

1.4

1.4

4.6

9.0

12.5

16.3

17.5

16.2

13.6

11.5

6.8

4.3

Average Temp. (oC)

7.9

8.3

11.2

16.7

20.4

23.5

25

22.5

21

18.8

13.4

10.3

Evap. mm/day

5.7

7.2

9.3

12.6

15.2

17.7

16.2

13.7

11.7

10.4

7.2

6.1

Rel. Humidity (%) M. Max. Temp. ( C)

El-Tur 1998-2002 ** Wind speed (km/h)

11.2

12.1

12

14.6

14.5

17.2

14.6

15.8

15.3

12.4

9.8

9.8

Rel. Humidity (%)

42.7

46

48

51.8

62.9

66.5

67.4

67.1

65.6

65

57.7

47.1

M. Max. Temp. (oC)

19.4

21.2

24.3

26.9

29.7

30.6

33.3

33.4

31.8

28.8

25.5

22.6

o

11.5

12.8

15.4

18.5

22.1

23.9

26.2

26.9

26

22.3

15.5

12.5

o

15.4

17

19.8

22.7

25.9

27.3

29.8

30.2

29

26

20.5

17.6

M. Min. Temp. ( C) Average Temp. ( C)

Evap. = evaporation, M. = mean, Max. = maximum, Min. = minimum, Rel. = relative, Temp = temperature - * Abd El-Wahab (2003) ** El-Tur Meteorological Station

3.1 Temperature Due to the wide range of altitude, South Sinai is characterized by a wide range of variation in air temperature. The lowest monthly mean minimum temperature ranges between 1.4°C at St. Catherine and 15.8°C at Sharm El-Sheikh, while the highest monthly mean maximum temperature varies between 30.8 and 35.8°C. St. Catherine is the coolest area in Sinai and Egypt as a whole due to its high elevation (1500-2641m asl). The low elevation wadis are warmer. Climatic data clarify the aridity situation of the study area and give an obvious note about climatic changes in St. Catherine and El-Tur areas. 3.2. Relative humidity and Evaporation In St. Catherine area, the relative humidity (Table 1) ranges between 24.9% in May and 49.8% in January. The evaporation there is greater during summer than winter, with maximum of 17.7 mm in June and minimum of 5.7 mm in January. 3.3. Precipitation Most of the precipitation in South Sinai occurs during winter and spring. Considerable precipitation occurs as a result of convective rains that are very local in extent and irregular in occurrence. Precipitation may occur as snow on the high peaks of South Sinai Mountains. The mean annual rainfall is 42.59 mm at Saint Catherine. The annual rainfall of Saint Catherine decreased from 60.4 mm in 1930’s to 42.6 mm in 1990’s (Abd El-Wahab, 2003). Rainfall in South Sinai is characterized by extreme variability in both time and space. The rainfall data in the historical past and recently revealed the occurrence of climatic cycles manifested by periods of rainy years alternating with droughty ones, with a general trend toward more aridity (Fig. 3). The spatial variability is extent in that one locality may have amount of rainfall that resulted in floods, and at the same time there is no rainfall in another locality a few kilometres 45

distant. Rainfall data recorded from two different stations at St. Catherine demonstrates this variability. The first station (1550m above sea level) recorded 72.6 and 119 mm for the years 1993 and 1994 respectively, while the other station (1350m above sea level) recorded 47.2, and 48.1 mm for those years respectively (Abd El-Wahab, 2003).

Fig. 3. Annual rainfall of St. Catherine (1971-1997). Mean annual rainfall was 42.59 mm. 4. Vegetation and Flora The Sinai Peninsula has the geographical importance of being the meeting place of Africa and Asia. Therefore, its flora combines elements from these two continents, Sahara-Arabian, Irano-Turanua, Mediterranean and Sudanian elements (McGinnies et al., 1968; Zohary, 1973; and Moustafa, 1990). In general, the vegetation is characterized by sparseness of plant cover of semi shrubs, restricted to wadis or growing on slopes of rocky hills and in sand fields and paucity of trees (Danin, 1986). However the lower altitudes support vegetation only in wadis, while that of the upper altitudes have a diffuse pattern (Danin, 1978). The vegetation of St. Catherine area is characterized by the dominance of four families: Compositae, Labiatae, Leguminosae, and Cruciferae (Moustafa, 1990). B. Western Mediterranean Coastal Desert (WMCD) 1. Location and Geography The second study area was the Western Mediterranean Coastal Desert. Scorpions were collected from Bahig village near Burg El-Arab city which belongs to Alexandria Governorate (Fig. 1). It is bordered from the east by Alexandria city and from the west by El-Hammam city. The Mediterranean Sea coast represents the northern border of the study area. The WMCD is a distinct northern part of the Western Desert. This desert extends from Alexandria westward about 600 km to Sallum and varies in width from 15 to 30 km in the eastern and central sections to a few kilometres in the west, south of the cliffs at Sallum. Various names applied to this region such as Marmarica (Hassib, 1951), Mareotis District (Kassas, 1955), Western Mediterranean Coastal Region (Täckholm, 1956), and Qattara littoral (Meigs, 1966). This coastal desert differs from the Sinai littoral in the fact that it is calcareous rather than siliceous, it has a higher rainfall and relative humidity, low wind speed and temperature as well as it has the richest flora in Egypt other than that of the Gebel Elba area (Tadros, 1953 and MD-MD, 1994). 2. Geology and Geomorphology At various intervals west of Alexandria, dunes of white oolitic sand form the coastline. Usually paralleling the sandy coast is a series of two valleys containing salt marshes alternating with limestone ridges (Shata, 1955). A few relatively short wadis 46

drain the annual runoff from the coastal desert. During heavy rains, they become torrents carrying large quantities of soil into the sea. With the introduction of irrigation water via canals from the Nile Delta, the coastal area as far west as El-Hammam is rapidly being changed. The most remarkable feature in the study area is the presence of a number of alternating ridges and depressions running parallel to the coast in the east-west direction. These ridges are formed from limestone with a hard crystallized crust and vary in altitude and lithological features according to the geological age (Ayyad, 1993) 3. Climate 3.1. Temperature and relative humidity According to Tornwhite climatic classification methodology the WMCD region is classified as a semi-arid area. The annual mean temperature is 19.3°C and the annual mean relative humidity is 63.4%. Available meteorological data (rainfall, temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, and evaporation) of Alexandria Governorate, mainly collected from El-Dabaa Meteorological Station and Alexandria-Nouzha Meteorological Station, are summarized in Table (2). 3.2. Precipitation The annual rainfall of Alexandria is 109 mm (Table 2). The WMCD from Sallum to the Nile Delta receives an average winter rainfall of 70-200 mm each year. The amount of rainfall decreases to about 80 mm at Port Said and to about half that of Alexandria at El-Arish in northern Sinai (Migahid et al., 1955). A considerable amount of dew is precipitated on the WMCD during the rainless part of the year and is reported to be of significance to shallow rooted plants (Migahid & Ayyad, 1959). Table 2: Available Meteorological data of Alexandria Governorate and WMCD, Egypt, compiled from different sources. Month

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

1982-1994 * Rainfall (mm)

127

72

57

1.1

12

2

0

16

12

58

168

159

62

60

58

60

59

67

69

71

65

65

68

57

o

18.1

18.9

20.3

22.7

25.5

27.8

29.2

19.9

28.7

27

22.4

19.7

o

M. Min. Temp. ( C)

8.1

8.4

9.7

11.8

14.5

18.2

20.2

21

19.7

16.8

13.3

10

Average Temp. (oC)

12.7

13.4

15

17.7

20

23.2

25

25.4

24.2

21.8

18.2

14.6

Wind Speed (km/h)

11.9

11.2

11.5

10.7

9.3

10

9.9

9

8.6

8.2

9.4

11.1

Rel. Humidity (%) M. Max. Temp. ( C)

1998-2002

**

Wind speed (km/h)

6.8

7.9

8.6

8.1

8.5

9.7

9.3

9.1

7.9

7.5

6.6

7.1

Rel. Humidity (%)

65.7

61.4

61.1

61.5

69.5

75.5

75.7

75.8

71.9

69

68.6

56.2

M. Max. Temp. ( C)

17.5

21

21.9

24

25.8

27.6

30.5

31.7

30.6

31.8

24.4

20.5

M. Min. Temp. (oC)

9.1

9.4

10.9

13.8

17.5

21.5

23.5

24

22.1

18.4

14.4

10.6

13.3

14.6

16.3

18.9

21.5

24.5

27.2

28

27

24

19.6

15.7

o

o

Average Temp. ( C)

M. = mean, Max. = maximum, Min. = minimum, Rel. = relative, Temp = temperature * El-Dabaa Meteorological Station (MD-MD, 1994) ** Alexandria-Nouzha Meteorological Station

3.3. Wind The annual mean wind speed is about 12.6 km/hr (Table 2). Wind velocity is greater on the coast than inland; especially in winter (Migahid et al., 1955) along with salt 47

spray, which is a major limiting factor suppressing development of vegetation on exposed ridges and cliffs near the seacoast. 4. Vegetation and Flora The four phytogeographical zones of WMCD have been defined by Kassas (1955) as follows: (1) Littoral oolitic sand dunes, (2) Sublittoral and inland oolitic limestone ridges 3 km apart, (3) Salt marsh between the two rocky ridges, and (4) Inland plains. Grazing and cutting for fuel have completely removed the vegetation from extensive areas around towns and villages and affected it elsewhere. In areas developed to agriculture, native plants have been reduced to a few species (Boulos, 2002).

Material and Methods The present work has been designed to investigate the intraspecific diversity of the morphological characters of Scorpio maurus palmatus (Ehrenberg, 1828) in Egypt. This scorpion species was chosen for the following reasons: (1) it is distributed in both arid and semiarid habitats, (2) it lives alone and not in communities inside burrows along its life cycle, and (3) the unique structure of its venom as well as its pharmacological properties. The scorpions were collected from two different geographical locations in Egypt. The first was the southern region of Sinai Peninsula, which represents the arid area and the second area that represents the semiarid area, was the western Mediterranean coastal desert (WMCD). Samples collecting: Scorpions were collected from the study areas, i.e. WMCD, Wadi. Sahab, Wadi El-Agramia and Wadi Rahaba, during August-September, 2001. They were collected during daytime by observing, surveying and locating the location of their burrows followed by excavation of the inhabitants (Williams, 1968a). The captive scorpions were kept alive in separate suitable plastic containers, in order to avoid cannibalism. At the same time, the depths of the scorpion's burrows were measured and their different shapes and designs were also drawn. The scorpion specimens’ species from all sites were identified according to the key of El-Hennawy (1987). Random soil samples were taken from all sites for physical and chemical analysis. In addition, the available plants and insects around the scorpion's burrows were collected and identified in Faculty of Science, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt. Preservation of scorpion samples: For taxonomic and morphological studies, scorpions were treated according to Williams (1968b), as follows: 1. Killing: Heat shock is accomplished by dropping living specimens into hot water (9099°C) until the metasoma straightens out. 2. Fixation: Immediately after killing, specimens were rinsed and left for 12-48 hours in the following fixative: a. Formalin, commercial strength: 12 parts, b. Isopropyl alcohol 99%: 30 parts, c. Glacial acetic acid: 2 parts, d. Distilled water: 56 parts. 3. Permanent storage: Specimens were rinsed in 50% isopropyl alcohol for an hour and transferred to 70% isopropyl alcohol for permanent storage in a dark place to avoid fading. Morphometric measurements of scorpions Ten adult individuals of each sex were collected from each location (WMCD, Wadi Sahab, Wadi El-Agramia. and Wadi Rahaba) for morphological analysis. Maturity was determined by body size and secondary sexual characteristics. In males, the length of the genital papillae was the primary indicator of maturity; sexually mature males 48

manifested a pronounced papilla compared with immature (Polis & Farley, 1979). For females, the smallest gravid individual offspring in each population was used as a crude measure of maturity; all larger females were considered mature. We analyzed 10 meristic (countable) and 29 continuous characters. The following meristic characters were measured: number of pectinal teeth (right and left), denticles of the sixth row on the fixed pedipalp finger (right and left), sixth row denticles of the movable pedipalp finger (right and left), number of setae on the first and second right legs, and the third leg (right and left). The continuous measured characters were: total body length, carapace length, pedipalp length (from base to the tip of the fixed finger), pedipalp hand (length and width), fourth right leg femur length, mesosoma length, metasoma length, metasomal segments from 1-5 (length, width and height), telson (length and width), pectinal teeth length (right and left), and marginal lamellae length of pecten (right and left). Scorpion mensuration was standardized by Stahnke (1970), and the continuous measurements were taken with a vernier calliper of 0.05 mm accuracy and eye piece micrometer (1/100 mm graduation). All measurements are in millimetres. Analysis of the environmental factors: In an attempt to reveal a relationship between environmental factors and diversity of scorpions morphology, the following measurements were taken. Surface soil samples (0-30cm depth) were collected from the four locations in tightly plastic containers (5 replicas from each site) and transferred to the laboratory. Soil samples were air-dried, thoroughly mixed and sieved through a 2 mm sieve to exclude large particles that are less reactive (Robertson et al., 1999). Physical analysis of soil 1. Grain size analysis: The air-dried samples were disaggregated by hand and then split using a cone and quarter technique. About 50 grams of the prepared samples were taken for mechanical analysis using standard sets of sieves. All samples were shacked in RoShaker for 15 minutes. The collected sieve fractions were accurately weighed and grainsize parameters were statistically calculated (Folk, 1974). 2. Total moisture content: The actual moisture content of the soil fluctuates depending upon the composition of the soil, topographic location, and climatic variation. A soil sample is weighed in a tarred aluminium container, placed in an oven, and dried at 105°C. Then the sample is reweighed, and the content of moisture is expressed as percentage of the oven dry weight (Wilde et al., 1972). Chemical analysis of soil 1. Soil pH is a measure of hydrogen ion activity in the soil solution. Soil pH is probably the single most informative measurement that can be made to determine soil characteristics. It can be used to make a rough estimate of availability of some essential nutrients (Thomas, 1996). Soil pH was measured electrometrically, using pH meter model HI 8014 Hanna Ins. Italy, in soil suspension of ratio 1 : 5 soil to water. The soil-water mixture was first shaken for 2 hours then pH was measured (Jackson, 1974). 2. Electrical Conductivity and Total Dissolved Salts Electrical conductivity (EC) is a numerical expression of the ability of an aqueous solution to carry an electric current. It is generally related to the total solute concentration and can be used as a quantitative expression of dissolved salt concentration (Rhoades, 1996). Soil EC was measured in soil water extract 1 : 5 using conductivity meter model HI 8033 Hanna Ins. Estimation of total dissolved salts (TDS) in (mg/L) was calculated by multiplying values of EC obtained by 640 (Westerman, 1990). 49

3. Soil Organic Matter (SOM) Soil organic matter influences many soil properties, including (i) the capacity of soil to supply nitrogen, phosphorus, and trace metals to plants, (ii) infiltration and retention of water, (iii) degree of aggregation and overall structure that affect air and water relationships, (iv) cation exchange capacity, (v) soil colour. SOM was measured using loss-ignition method carried out at high temperature. This method gives quantitative oxidation of organic matter (Nelson & Sommers, 1996). Data Analysis Data were statistically analyzed using SPSS software (Statistical Package for Social Science, Version 11.01) (Dancey and Reidy, 2002). Tabulation and graphics of data were done using Microsoft Excel XP. Descriptive statistics analyses including mean, standard error (Zar, 1984) were applied to all the morphometric measurements of scorpions and environmental factors in each locality to have a preliminary description about the status of the morphological characters of the scorpions from the different locations. 1. Variation within population To explain variation within each population of scorpions (sexual dimorphism), comparison between all the morphological characters of males and females in each location was done. Student's unpaired t-test was used to reveal this hypothesis. 2. Variation among populations One-way ANOVA was carried out to test this hypothesis for all morphological characters (variables) of scorpions. ANOVA was applied to find out if there is a significant difference between males from different sites (site is a covariate) and between females from separate sites as well. In addition, One-way ANOVA was used to test variation in the environmental factors between different sites. Duncan's multiple range post ANOVA test, was carried out to determine which means differ within different areas for those variables showing significant F ratio. Two-way factorial ANOVA design using General Linear Model (GLM) was used to examine the effect of site as a covariant and sex as the other covariant in the diversity of scorpion's morphology. 3. Association between morphological characters and environmental factors Linear correlation coefficient (r) also called Pearson product moment correlation coefficient was applied to find out the relationship between morphometric measurements (meristic and continuous) of scorpions and environmental factors. 4. Canonical Discriminant Functions Analysis (DFA) Discriminant Functions Analysis (DFA), a multivariate technique, allows input of several variables to investigate the morphometric relationship among several populations. It maximizes among-group distances while shrinking within-group dispersion to resolve patterns among groups (Albrecht, 1980 and Reyment et al., 1984). 5. Similarities in the morphometric measurements between scorpion populations Hierarchical cluster analysis was carried out to measure the similarity distance in the morphometric measurements among scorpion populations.

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Results Habitat Characteristics Nature of soil Results in Table (3) illustrate physical and chemical properties of soil samples collected from the study areas (WMCD, Wadi Sahab, Wadi El-Agramia and Wadi Rahaba). Statistical analysis of various soil parameters revealed high significant difference between localities. Soil physical properties: moisture, cobble sand, pepple sand and very fine sand showed high values of F ratio with high significance between different localities. The same results were observed in the soil chemical properties; total dissolved salts and electrical conductivity (Table 3). Generally, soil of the study areas Wadi Sahab, Wadi El-Agramia and Wadi Rahaba were light or yellowish brown in colour, sandy, characterized by low content of silt and clay, alkaline (pH 7.4-8.1), non-saline to slightly saline (EC 0.08-0.11), low content of soil organic matter (SOM 0.4-0.66%) and low content of soil moisture (Moisture 0.47-0.53%). On the other hand, soil from WMCD was yellowish brown or dark brown and it has high contents of soil organic matter, soil moisture, total dissolved salts, silt and clay when compared with those from South Sinai. Scorpions’ burrows Burrows of S. m. palmatus have different structures (Fig. 4). Maximum scorpion burrow depth was recorded in Wadi Sahab (88±6.6 cm) while the minimum depth was recorded in WMCD (12±1.2). There was a significant difference in the depth of scorpions burrows between sites (P